


Savior In The Abyss

by eclecticscribbles



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Blackwatch Era, Blackwatch Jesse McCree, Drug Abuse, Drug Withdrawal, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Origins, Past Drug Use, Reaper76 - Freeform, he's their favorite adoptive son, jesse isn't shipped with anyone in this, just a heads up, some tags are for later chapters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-12
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2018-09-16 23:12:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9293876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eclecticscribbles/pseuds/eclecticscribbles
Summary: Gabriel Reyes picks up a kiddo who deserves a chance in the world and is willing to actually be there for him when he needs it.





	1. Edge Of The Abyss

**Author's Note:**

> Begins on the transport ride home after Jesse agrees to take the deal

“Hey, wake up kiddo.”

 

“Hmm?” Jesse mumbles, burying his face into the soft surface it was pressed against. 

 

“C’mon. We're back at base.” Gabriel said, ruffling Jesse's hair. At that, Jesse's eyes flew open and he looks up at the man sitting next to him. It takes a second for him to remember everything that happened in the past few hours, but everything clicks into place. Overwatch- no  _ Blackwatch  _ agents raided Deadlock and either arrested or killed everybody, except for him. Gabriel Reyes gave him a deal: work for Blackwatch and stay out of prison. Jesse pounced on the deal at the time, but now that it was real he felt his nerves rising up. A small cough to his left snaps him out of his thoughts and back to the present. He realizes that he’s been using Gabriel’s thigh as a pillow the entire flight and shoots upright. The coat he didn’t know was draped over him slides onto the floor and Jesse scrambles to pick it up. He holds it out in front of him for a second before recognizing that it’s Reyes’ coat.  He probably threw his coat over him sometime after he fell asleep. Jesse holds it out to the other man and stares at the floor as he feels his face turn red.

 

“Sorry about the…” Jesse trails off. Gabriel takes it and folds it over his arm, flashing Jesse a warm smile and ruffles his hair. A warm feeling fills Jesse when Gabe touches him, it takes everything in him not to flinch away from the soft touch. He’s a little disappointed when the hand leaves him.

 

“It's fine, kid, you've had a long day. Let's get you settled so you can get a few hours of real sleep before sunrise though.” Gabriel begins leading Jesse off the transport and through the abandoned hallways of the base. “It's pretty late so I can't get you your own set of personal supplies or set you up in your room, but we'll do all that in the morning. Right now let’s just get you cleaned up and you can just borrow some of my clothes for the night. Then we'll get some food in you and I'll set you up on the couch. Sound good?”

 

The mention of food snaps Jesse’s attention away from peeking into each open doorway they pass, all leading into huge rooms; some empty, some full of crates, one with a couch and a tv screen flashing, and back to Gabriel. The man was looking over his shoulder, not slowing his pace, waiting for a response. 

 

“Yeah, sounds great boss.”

 

Gabe came to a stop in front of a door and punches in a number on the keypad. The LED flashes green and the door slides open. Jesse figures he should have payed more attention just in case he'd need the combination but he couldn't really bring himself to care all that much right now. He's felt more safe and comfortable in the past hour than he's felt in years. 

 

Gabriel walks in and turns on a dim lamp, motioning for him to follow, and letting the door slide closed silently behind them. It was a big room, enough space for a king size bed, small love seat, dresser and a desk cluttered with folders and loose papers, but other than that the floor space was minimal. Gabriel was busy digging through the dresser when Jesse met the gaze of another man sitting up from under the covers in the bed. Jesse froze where he stood, barely visible piercing eyes pinning him in place. He could feel the other taking in his filthy, blood stained clothes and dirt tracks leading straight to him, mud caking off his boots in chunks under his feet.

 

“Who's your friend here, Gabriel?” the man finally spoke up, still not breaking eye contact. 

 

“Jesse,” Gabe replies, not stopping his search through the dresser. “He's gonna crash on the couch and then tomorrow we're going to get him all set up with Blackwatch. I'm getting him some sweats to wear for the night.”

 

“Oh,” he grumbled exasperatedly, “I didn't realize we have a new agent.” 

 

Reyes finally stands up and hands a set of sweats and boxers to Jesse and ushers him towards the bathroom. “There's towels and soap in there already. Clean yourself up and then you can just toss your old clothes in the trash. We’ll get you some new ones tomorrow.”

 

Gabriel pulls the door closed behind Jesse and leaves him to shower in peace. He immediately feels like he’s intruding. Everything was clean and orderly, sterilized white tile and rugs lining the floor. His boots already had a pile of mud and sand under them so he kicks them off and sets them to the side before stripping down and leaving his clothes in a pile on the ground. 

 

The shower was simple enough to get running but as soon as Jesse steps under the stream of water, he feels like he’s in heaven. The water was perfectly warm and the pressure was amazing. An audible groan escaped his lips as the hot water loosened the tension he’s been carrying on his shoulders for years. He lets himself sit under the spray for a minute before starting to scrub away the dirt that’s built up on his skin for months. He washes his hair and scrapes at his scalp until the water turns clear again.

 

He steps out of the shower and dries himself off quickly, the cooler air outside of the shower sending goosebumps across his arms as he pulls on Gabriel’s sweats. He catches a glimpse of himself in the vanity mirror on his way out. The clothes were about two sizes too big, and he looked like he was two seconds away from starving to death, but he was  _ clean _ . He couldn't remember the last time he got to take a shower that wasn’t just a quick spray with a hose.

 

Jesse steps out of the bathroom and feels both men’s eyes on him. A smile spread across Gabe's face when he gives him a once over. He gets off the bed and takes the towel from Jesse to towel dry the sopping mess on top of Jesse's head. Jesse feels his muscles tense up at the contact but then relax when he realizes Gabriel isn’t trying to hurt him. Reyes drying his hair was actually kind of a nice feeling and Jesse closes his eyes and allows himself to enjoy it. Once Gabriel decides his hair is dry enough he tosses the towel to the side and turns to Jack.

“You want to come to the mess with us?”

 

Jack sighs after a second and slides out from under the covers and leads the way to the mess hall. Once there Gabriel digs through the fridge and reheats plates of leftover spaghetti for them to eat. Jack brews a pot of coffee while Jesse sits at the counter and watches them weave around each other like people who've known each other closely for years.

 

“So are you two like boyfriends or somethin’?”

 

Jack scoffs in disbelief and Gabriel lets out a chuckle as he twirls a empty mug between his hands. They share a knowing glance before looking back at Jesse. 

 

“No, we just live together and share the same bed because we're just that good of friends.” Gabriel responds sarcastically, the beep of the microwave cutting off his next sentence. He turns and puts the steaming plate in front of Jesse, Jack sliding a glass of water to the kid as well. “But yeah, we're boyfriends. That's not a problem is it?”

 

Jesse pauses from shoving more noodles into his mouth and looks up from his plate at Gabriel and shakes his head. He barely pauses before going back to shoving more food into his mouth. Gabe was pretty sure he wasn't even breathing. The only sound between the three of them was a fork scraping against the plate a mile a minute. The plate was empty within five minutes. Jesse set his fork on the plate and heaves for air for a solid minute before looking across the counter at Gabe and Jack. 

 

Both were staring down at him with wide eyes. Shame burned across his face and he could feel his ears turn red. He turns his gaze to the floor. 

 

“Sorry,” he mumbles, shrinking into himself. The sound of plates sliding across the table breaks the silence of the room and snaps Jesse’s attention back to the table. Gabe was dragging the empty plate towards himself and was pushing his still mostly full plate towards Jesse. 

 

Jesse immediately tries to push it back across the table, “No, I'm fine, I-”

 

“Eat it.”

 

“N-”

 

“Jesse.” This time it was Jack. Jesse sighs, but picks up his fork again and eats slower this time. They eat in a comfortable silence and when they're done Jack cleans off their plates while Gabriel wipes down the counter. As soon as they're finished the three head back down the abandoned halls to their room. 

 

Next thing he knew, Gabe was handing him a blanket and a pillow from the bed and was basically all but tucking him in on the sofa. He even rustles his hair again before climbing into bed with Jack. 

 

“Goodnight,” Gabriel says to the both of them as he turns off the lamp sitting on the bedside table. 

 

“Night,” Jess replies after a moment, sinking into the cushions and pulling the blanket under his chin. A warm feeling spreads in his chest when he hears Jack start snoring from the bed, and Jesse realizes as he drift to sleep that this is the safest he's felt in a long time. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesse just needs some TLC

Gabriel wakes up a few minutes before his alarm is supposed to sound. He stretches and groans, rolling over to switch off the clock before it goes off. Out of habit he rolls back on his side and wraps his arms around Jack, trailing kisses up his neck to his mouth.

 

“Wakey wakey, Jackie.”

 

Jack groans but pulls Gabriel closer, returning the kiss with ease. They lie in bed, enjoying each others presence in silence for a few minutes before Gabriel drags himself away and turns on the lamp. The light faintly illuminates Jesse snoring and drooling over on the couch. Despite the hand trying to drag him back into bed, Gabe gets up and walks over to Jesse, kneeling near his head.

 

“Hey bud, wake up,” Gabriel says softly, gently shaking his shoulder.

 

Jesse’s eyes fly open and he flinches away towards the back of the couch. He looks terrified for a moment but then he softens and drops his head back on his pillow.

 

“Ah,” Gabe rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, “Sorry.”

 

“It’s fine, just not used to being touched.”

 

“I can stop if you want me t-”

 

“No,” Jesse cuts him off and looks away sheepishly, “It’s nice.”

 

Gabe smiles at him and ruffles his hair before standing back up, “Breakfast is in thirty minutes. There’s a spare toothbrush under the sink and after breakfast we can get you set up with everything else.”

 

“Sounds good, boss,” Jesse mumbles into his pillow and flashes a thumbs up sign towards Gabriel.

 

The three of them get ready and head down to the mess hall quickly, ready to start the day. Jack ushers the two of them to a table and brings three trays of food for them. Jesse inhales his food like the previous night and scrambles back to the line for more. Jack finishes off his toast and grabs his mug, giving Gabriel a quick kiss before heading off to his office. 

 

Gabriel sips his coffee while Jesse finishes his breakfast. He takes the dishes and drops them in a tub by the garbage and beckons for Jesse to follow him. Jesse scrambles from the table and tails him like a puppy as they walk the base and Gabe shows him where everything is. A few agents gave some side eye at the kid as they walked by but a glare from Reyes set them straight. 

 

He leads them to a giant supply room and digs out a few sets of clothes in size small, boots, size 10, personal soaps and lotions, a razor, and shoves them into a standard issue backpack. He hands the bag to McCree and grabs two towels, a set of sheets as well as a pillow, and blanket and stacks them in Jesse’s arms. He leads the way back to the dorms and pushes open one of the doors. 

 

Sunlight streaming in through the single window overlooking the water off the rock of Gibraltar illuminates the dust in the room disturbed by the wind from the door opening. Inside, there’s a single metal bed frame and the mattress was leaned up against the opposite wall. A dresser was against the same wall as the door and a small area rug was in the center of the room. Other than that the room was pretty empty. 

 

Gabriel and Jesse put the matress on the frame and gave the room a quick cleaning. He helps Jesse figure out how to put the sheets on right and fold his clothes properly before leading him off to the training area to see how well the kid could handle some exercise. 

 

Training goes about as good as he expected. He’s extremely out of shape and scrawny, bruises easily but doesn’t give up. His aim was consistent and steady, hitting each target even though Reyes could tell he was exhausted. He pushed himself enough to throw up once already and he’s swaying enough on his feet again that Gabe decides training is done for the day. He gives Jesse some privacy to take a quick shower and they meet up for dinner at the Mess Hall. When Jesse sits down with his plate of roasted chicken, he’s looking rough. His eyes were puffy and dark circles under his eyes were starting to appear. 

 

“You alright?” Gabriel asks, tousling his hair, “I wasn’t too hard on you was I?”

 

Jesse perks up at the touch, “Nah, just a little tired I guess, not used to that much runnin’ around.”

 

“Well eat up and then you’re dismissed, I don’t have anything else planned for the day other than doing some paperwork. You can go to the rec room or just go to bed if you want, you’ve got free reign of the base.”

 

“That sounds mighty fine to me.”

 

Jesse eats his food at a normal pace for once and waves his goodbye to Gabriel as he heads down to hall leading to the dorms. Jack arrives soon after and sits down at the table with a tray.

 

“Hey Gabi, how was training today with the kid?”

 

He feels a slight blush spread across his cheeks at the nickname. “It went alright. Jesse’s super out of shape though - and tiny! He’s got no muscle mass. We gotta bulk him up before we can send him out in the field.”

 

“He’ll get there. Especially with you running his ass on drills. I’ve seen you whip scrawnier kids into shape.”

 

Gabriel chuckles into his cup as he drinks, “Yeah. you’re right.”

 

“Got any plans for the night?”

 

“Paperwork, still gotta finish filing all the Deadlock reports.” Gabriel says as he stand up and takes his empty plate.

 

“Well I’ll see you tonight then, love you.” Jack says to him from the table.

 

“Love you too, Jack,” he says and blows a kiss over his shoulder as he starts down the hall towards his office.

 

xXx

 

He was running. From what he didn't know, he just felt anxiety pulsing through him and a feeling that he needed to be running. Everything was black. There was no light, only darkness. Until there wasn’t. A small speck of blue light was far in the distance; barely even visible except to his trained eyes, but it was enough. He ran. 

 

Just as he was about to reach it, the light was torn away. Always held right out of reach. Just far enough that creatures in the darkness engulfed him, the light not enough to keep them away; not enough to keep them from tearing him apart as the light drifted further and further away.

 

Gabriel jolts awake. A pool of sweat stains the bed beneath him, sheets sticking to his back like glue. It takes a few moments for him to get his breathing back to normal. Jack is out like a log next to him. He always snores like a goddamn chainsaw. Gabriel supposes it's not too bad of a flaw on nights like these. He didn't want to see the worry in the other’s piercing, blue eyes anyways. 

 

He flops down on his back and the tiny hole in the ceiling that he always stares at comes as a comfort to him. Same speck, same spot, same dream. 

 

He focuses on the snoring and times his breathing with Jack. Inhale...1….2...snort….3. Pause. Exhale….1….2….3. Rinse and repeat. After a few cycles, he's nowhere closer to drifting back off and debates whether or not it would be beneficial to get some fresh air. 

 

Gabriel lets out a long sigh and sits up, swinging his feet off the side of the bed and onto the cold, grey tile ground of their room. Yesterday’s shirt was crumpled on the floor at the foot of the bed next to his boots and the jeans he ditched last night in favor of his sweat pants. Gabe scratches at his chest and stands, adjusting his sweatpants and pulling the worn t-shirt on, socks be damned.

 

He walks around the base for a few minutes before deciding to check on McCree. It’s his first night at the base alone and he wants to make sure he feels safe enough to sleep. He heads to the dorm halls and arrives shortly.

 

Gabriel knocks softly on the door and waits a few seconds. There’s no answer. He’s not too surprised, the kid was probably exhausted; he was looking a little rough toward the end of the night. Still, he wants to make sure Jesse’s alright so he cracks open the door and peeks in. The room is empty. Gabe pushes the door open the rest of the way and steps in. His pillow is on the edge of the bed, in danger of falling off and the blanket is draped across the floor towards the door. Jesse is nowhere in sight. Gabe’s heart beat picks up as he runs through a few option in his head. Jesse’s pack and other clothes were still in the room so he probably didn’t run away. The rec room was empty when he passed by and the shared bathroom close by was empty when he passed by. Gabriel took off towards the mess hall since the only other possibility was that he was hungry. Jesse was probably on the hunt for food and Gabe didn’t want someone on the night rounds to yell at him if someone finds him digging through the pantry.

 

He makes it about halfway to the mess hall when he passes the rarely used bathroom on this side of the base. Retching and coughing echoed from inside, bouncing down the abandoned halls. The beginning of a sob was almost hidden by the flush of a toilet, but Gabe’s trained ears pick it up. It sounds small and desperate. His feet drag him into the bathroom before he even processes that he’s moving. Once inside, the scent of vomit and sweat contrasts against the sterile scent of the cleaning done earlier in the night. Gabriel stalks closer to the feet sticking out of a stall and freezes once he sees who it is.

 

Jesse was bent over the toilet on his knees, heaving into the porcelain bowl. Once he stopped vomiting, a sob escaped his throat and he presses his forehead to the seat, Gabriel watching in silence as the sob snowballs into a full breakdown. Fat tears roll from the corners of his eyes and drop off his chin, leaving droplets of water stains on his shirt. He’s too out of it to realize that Gabriel is watching him. A few moments pass, and shivers work their way across Jesse's body, leaving him a trembling, sobbing mess on the floor. 

 

The rational part of Gabriel's mind that says Jesse would be furious if he knew Gabe was watching him lost the bet against his protective side as he stepped forward, closing the distance between Jesse and himself and drops to his knees next to him, placing a hand on the small of his back.

 

“Je-”

 

Jesse yelps and flinches away reflexively, smacking the back of his head on the toilet paper dispenser. A weak whine escapes from his throat. Jesse rubs the back of his head and stares pointedly at the tile floor before glancing up, eyes red-rimmed and exhausted. 

 

He looks terrible. Bile was trailing down the corner of his mouth and onto his shirt. The dark circles around his eyes have bags darker than they should be for kids his age, and his eyes themselves were bloodshot and red, rimmed with fresh tears that were about to burst. Gabe could hear his teeth chattering. And to top it off, he was pressing further against the opposite side of the stall, shaking like a scared wild animal and eyeing him like he’s about to get his ass kicked.

 

“Jesse,” he begins and lifts his hand to reach out to him, but Jesse puts his arm up to cover his face and flinches away, hitting his head on the dispenser again. He whimpers and rubs the back of his head again with his other hand.

 

“Please don’t- I-I’m sorry!” he wheezes, “Did I wake you up? I thought I was far enough away that no one would hear me.“ Jesse tries to push himself up on shaky hands, “I can go to a different bathroom, I can-” Gabe can tell the sudden panic sent another wave of nausea through Jesse and within seconds his face is back into the toilet, throwing up the rest of Reinhardt's dinner. He presses his face against the seat, riding out the small convulsions of his body. Gabriel reaches over and rubs his back in small circles. He can feel the muscles tense under his hand but he continues anyways, and feels them gradually become relaxed as Jesse regains his bearings. 

 

After some time Jesse kneels back on his haunches but he doesn’t meet Gabriel’s gaze.

 

“Jesse…”Gabriel trails off again, not really knowing what to say in their current situation. 

 

“I’m pathetic,” he replies, realizing he has some vomit still on the corner of his mouth, he reaches up and wipes it off on the back of his hand, dropping his palm back on the floor. It takes everything in Gabe’s soul not to jump forward and wrap his arms around the boy in front of him and never let go. He looks so small, so scrawny. The fact that Jesse was only seventeen years old hit him again like a bag of bricks. The facade he put up in the interrogation room seemed miles behind them, left in the desert along with his dead “friends”. 

 

“What did they get you hooked on?”

 

There was such a long period of silence Gabriel thought Jesse might have passed out where he was kneeling.

 

“I...I- don’t-” the beginning of Jesse's sentence cut off into broken sobs. Watching Jesse break down again breaks the reserve in Gabriel’s heart and he reaches for Jesse to pull him into a bear hug, resting his chin on the top of his head. He can tell the kid wasn't expecting this from the way he tenses up and tries to pull away immediately, but Gabe just holds him despite his efforts. He cards his fingers through the hair at the nape of Jesse's neck and rubs small circles into his back, still holding him close. After a few seconds the other melts into the touch. He feels Jesse sag against him and press his head into his palm. They sit like this for a while. Jesse’s sobs stop and he goes quiet. Gabe almost thinks he's fallen asleep until he peels his face away from his shoulder. His gaze is glued to the tile floor again while he wipes his face with the collar of his shirt. Gabriel still hasn't fully let go but has given Jesse enough room to sit up straight. 

 

“Heroin, I think. I don’t really know for sure.”

 

“How long?”

 

“Since...since I don't know, when I got wise enough to realize my life was shit. ‘Was how they got me to stay for so long.” 

 

Now it was Gabriel’s turn to stare at the floor. He feels nauseous. He can imagine those Deadlock pieces of shit giving young Jesse McCree a small dose, just enough to feel a little wave of a high, luring him in, giving him more; getting him addicted until he had to work for them to pay off drug debts and to keep the high going. A wave of anger pulses through him. Those fucks knocked Jesse down before the kid could even stand on his own two feet. Set him up from the beginning to fail. 

 

A sob snaps him out of his mind. Jesse was crying again. He didn’t even bother trying to hide it, maybe he was too exhausted to, Gabriel can’t blame him, going from years of abuse to cold turkey was probably the worst thing he could imagine. His small frame was trembling with each sob and Gabe surges forward to pull him against his chest and run his fingers through the hair. Jesse buries his face in the crook of Gabe’s neck, clenching a fist into the fabric of his t-shirt. 

 

He mumbles something into his shoulder and Gabe has to pull away for him to say it again, “I’m sorry, Reyes. I..I can't do this on my own. I tried my best to and I-” another sob breaks the sentence, but Gabe just holds Jesse against him again, pressing his cheek to the top of his head.

 

“You don’t have to do this on your own, mijo. I’m not going anywhere.”

 

“Promise?” he whimpers after a long moment.

 

“I promise,” Gabriel replies steadily, trying to give it as much sincerity and countenance as possible. They sit on the bathroom floor until his legs start to fall asleep. He stirs Jesse from where the kid was practically asleep against him and hauls him up from under his armpits, pressing them chest to chest. Jesse wraps his legs and arms around his torso, clinging to him like a child. He shoves his face in the crook of Gabe’s neck as he supports the other’s miniscule weight with an arm under his thighs and the other rubbing small circles up and down his back. He could feel the trembles working through the frail body in his arms as he made his way down the deserted hallways back to the bedroom. 

 

By the time he makes it back Jesse is out cold, but keeps spasming in his arms. Gabe supposes some fresh clothes and a warm bed could help with that but he makes a mental note to get with Mercy as soon as possible. Athena slides the door slides open for him and Jack is sitting up in the bed with the bedside lamp turned on. He flashes a tired smile, but then frowns in concern when he sees Jesse cradled in his arms. Gabriel passes Jesse to Jack’s arms, and Jesse stirs, whining to himself as the hand still clenching Gabe’s shirt clamps tighter. Jack rustles Jesse’s hair soothingly as Gabe untangles the hand and wordlessly digs through his dresser for a clean hoodie and sweatpants. It takes a little bit of maneuvering for the two of them to get Jesse dressed and curled up on the bed. Gabe disappears for a second and reappears with a washcloth to wipe off Jesse’s face and some of the sweat dampening his hair. 

 

“Gabi…” Jack trails, leaving the question unsaid.

 

“They’ve been drugging him. That’s how they’ve kept him around for so long, Jackie…” Gabe shuffles the covers and tucks Jesse in the gap between Jack and himself before climbing in on the other side. He runs a hand through Jesse’s hair and he leans into the touch, a soft sigh escaping past his lips, “fuckers.”

 

Jesse shifts closer to him and wraps around Gabriel’s torso. Gabe slides an arm around Jesse’s shoulders, meeting Jack’s gaze across the top of his head and leans over to give him a quick kiss. Jack sighs into it before scooting closer to spoon behind Jesse and wrap an arm around the kid.

 

“You think he’ll be alright?” Jack asked.

 

Gabriel glances down at the kid snuggled against his chest snoring softly and looks back up at Jack, soft smile on his face.

 

“I think he’s gonna be just fine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this chapter first tbh, I love protective Dad!Gabe and there needs to be more


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wakey wakey

Gabriel wakes up to the sound of whimpering and the  tug of someone inching closer to him. He sleepily blinks his eyes open and yawns, looking down at the mop of brown hair on the pillow next to him. A  wave of confusion washes over him before remembering what happened the previous night. He glances across the bed to find Jack already gone, blue trench coat missing from the hook by the door as well. At this, Gabriel’s gaze shoots to the alarm clock on the nightstand and sees the time covered with a note;

 

_ Gabe  _

_ Told Amari she’s covering for you today - take it easy with the kid _

_ Love you _

_ Jackie _

 

Gabe’s heart warms as he sinks back on the mattress. Jack really did know him inside and out. He loves him so much, the bastard, now he’s going to have to take him out to dinner sometime soon to thank him, or maybe a post-office-hours blowjob in Jack’s office would suffice… 

 

A low whine next to him snaps Gabriel out of his thoughts.

 

He looks down at the kid. Honestly, he’s looking pretty terrible. A layer of sweat is covering his face and forehead, his eyes are squeezed shut like he’s in pain, and every few seconds his entire body shivers despite being wrapped in three layers of blankets. Jesse whines again and shuffles closer against Gabriel, pulling the edges of the blankets tighter around himself.

 

Gabe reaches over with the arm Jesse’s not pressed against, and feels his forehead. The kid’s burning up. His hand must have felt cool against his sweaty skin, because Jesse sighs in relief, pressing his sticky forehead into his palm insistently. Gabe exhales with a low sigh. He really doesn’t want to wake him up and have him face the full extent of withdrawal. He knows it’s not going to be pretty, and the kid’s got a whole life of trust issues he’s going to have to push through when he wakes up if he wants the help he needs from Gabriel. He wishes he Angela had some kind of pill that would make all of the bad shit stop so Jesse wouldn’t have to suffer through the next few days. Maybe that makes him a softie, but he doesn’t care. The kid was only seventeen, someone that young shouldn’t be having to go through shit like this.

 

Gabe sighs again and ruffles Jesse’s disheveled hair for a moment before carefully peeling himself away just enough to attempt to sit up. Though as he shifts, Jesse stirs and faintly whines, grabbing at the hem of Gabe’s shirt, clenching the fistful of cloth tightly.

 

“Shhh,” Gabe whispers, soothingly running his hand through Jesse’s hair, dropping his palm to the back of Jesse’s neck, lightly squeezing the tense muscles there to try and get him to relax enough so he could sit up. Once he’s fully seated, Jesse re-curls around him, with half of his head on the pillow and the other half using Gabriel’s thigh as a pillow. Gabe doesn’t bother trying to uncurl the fist from his shirt. Instead he waits for Jesse to wake up on his own, scrolling through his Blackwatch tablet to finish signing off on the last few Deadlock mission reports while absentmindedly ruffling the kids hair with his free hand to give Jesse some comfort as he reads.

 

About thirty minutes later, he feels Jesse start to stir differently from the restless whining and turning he’d been doing since Gabriel woke up. Slowly, Jesse lifts his head from the crook of his thigh and glances around the room, sluggishly but tension building in his limbs. 

 

“Morning, kiddo.”

 

Jesse winces and drops his head back down on the pillow, glancing up at Gabriel out of the corner of his eye.

 

“...Mornin’...” He mumbles, “What... happened?”

 

“Last night I found you in the bathroom. Withdrawal started to hit you pretty hard and I didn’t think it would be safe if you spent the night alone in your room.”

 

“Oh.” A shiver works its way across Jesse. He wraps the edges of the blanket tighter around himself, sinking closer against Gabriel’s warmth. He’s quiet for a moment and sniffles once before speaking up again, softly, “Thanks.”

 

Gabriel reaches over and ruffles Jesse’s hair in lieu of a reply, feeling the kid relax under his hand, leaning into his palm for a moment. They settle in a comfortable morning silence while Gabriel takes a few minutes to finish the final report. Jesse is so still beside him Gabriel almost thinks the kid might have fallen back asleep, until  Jesse jumps up from the bed and half stumbles, half runs into the bathroom. Gabriel has barely even fully stood up by the time he starts to hear heaving and gagging coming from the bathroom.

 

He slowly tiptoes to the bathroom and hovers outside the mostly ajar threshold, not completely sure if Jesse wants him to be in there with him. After a minute there’s a pause in the heaving, followed by a flush, and Gabriel lightly taps on the door with his knuckles.

 

“You alright?”

 

“...yeah.” A sniffle comes shortly after the reply.

 

“Want me to come in?”

 

A longer pause this time. “...yeah.”

 

Gabe pushes into the bathroom, finding the kid sitting back on his haunches on the floor in front of the toilet. He’s shivering and sniffling, staring down into the bowl. Gabriel sits on the tile next to Jesse and reaches over to rub small circles on his back, noticing him stiffen at the touch, and then relax into it, dropping his shoulders and allowing Gabe to continue. A moment later, Jesse hangs his head and wipes at his face as silent tears start streaming down his cheeks, quickly erupting into full sobbing, shoulders heaving forwards with each breath. 

 

Gabriel’s heart hurts and he lunges forwards, basically pulling the kid into his lap and wrapping his arms around him, rubbing up and down his back, letting Jesse cling to him and sob and tremble into his shoulder, burying his face in Gabe’s shirt. 

 

He cries for a few minutes straight before calming down and peeling himself away from the crook of Gabe’s shoulder. He sits up with his gaze towards the floor, eyes red and tired, still wet.

 

“ ‘M sorry, I don’t know why I keep crying,” Jesse huffs a small exasperated laugh while he wipes his face with the sleeve of his borrowed sweatshirt, “I don’t usually cry this much,” he finally looks up at Gabe and holds up a number three with his fingers, small smile on his face, “Scouts honor.”

 

“You were a scout?” he asks with a lighthearted smirk.

 

“Nah, but I found an old copy of the handbook when I was a kid,” Jesse’s gaze drops back to the floor, “I used to teach myself the knots and stuff when I was bored.”

 

Gabriel shifts his arm from Jesse’s back and places his hands on Jesse's shoulders to get his attention from the floor. 

 

“Listen kiddo, I’m not gonna’ try to say that I know everything that you’re going through, because I don’t know, but I  _ do _ know that it sucks, and it’s going to be rough for a little bit, but I’m going to be here with you through it, okay? And I know that I just plucked you out of the desert, and you probably don’t trust me too much, but Overwatch is a family. And if you give us your all, it can be your family too.”

 

As he speaks, Gabriel watches a slew of emotions pass through Jesse’s eyes; confusion, suspicion, distrust, fear, but as he finishes, they are quickly replaced with wide hopeful eyes that look up at him like he is the rising sun of a new day after the longest night of his life. Fresh tears start to form in the corner of Jesse’s eyes and he lunges towards Gabriel, wrapping around him in a hug. Gabe wraps his arms around him in kind, squeezing the kid in a bear hug. 

 

“This can be a second shot for you, Jesse. A second chance to make a difference in the world, do some real good, and keep people safe, create a life for yourself that you are proud to live.”

 

Jesse pulls away from Gabe so he can make eye contact, nodding excitedly despite the tear tracks on his face.

 

“That sounds really good, jefe.”

 

Gabriel smiles at him, reaching to ruffle his hair, “I’m glad that sounds good to you, kiddo.”

 

His gaze catches Jesse’s hands in his lap, trembling and twitching pretty badly and his smile drops a little. Jesse’s gaze drops to follow his and he clenches his hands into tight fists, trying to make them stop. Gabe watches the kid debate with himself for a minute before he speaks up, small nervous smirk on his face, eyebrow cocked.

 

“Got any smokes?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ayy better late than never right?
> 
> ( I've literally thought about this chapter every day for the past year of my life but now it's here, also I split this chapter into two parts and most of the second is written so it won't take me a year, i promise <3 )
> 
> (( my tumblr theme is under construction but you can yell at me if you want --
> 
> https://eclectic-scribbles.tumblr.com/ ))


	4. Chapter 4

Gabriel leads Jesse through the mostly empty midday halls of the base and across the courtyard to a strip of rocks on the cliffside behind the communications satellite. He sits down with his legs hanging over the edge and motions for Jesse to sit beside him. Gabe pulls a worn, half empty pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and knocks two out, passing one to Jesse. He lights his own and holds out the lighter for Jesse, taking a small drag and slowly blowing the smoke out over the cliffside. From the corner of his eye, he watches Jesse’s shaky hands light the cigarette with a practiced ease.

“Didn’t take you for a smoker,” Jesse notes.

“Usually don’t. This pack’s almost a year old.”

“Ah, I gotcha.” He takes a long drag. “This is a real nice spot.”

“It’s peaceful, the perfect place to sit and think.”

The two smoke their cigarettes down to the butts and scrape them out on the rocks. Gabe tucks them back into the carton and leans back on the rock, skin absorbing the rays of afternoon sun. For a while the waves crashing against the rocks at the bottom of the cliff is the only sound heard.

“Do you really think I can help people?”

Gabriel cracks an eye open and glances at the kid. He knees are pulled up against his chest and he’s staring off across the water, lost in thought.

“Yes, I do. Do you think you can help people?”

“I think so,” Jesse pauses a moment, “I can try my best to.”

Gabriel closes his eye and leans back again, “That’s all that I can ask for.”

Jesse is quiet. The silence carries on for a few minutes before Gabriel hears a sniffle. He opens his eyes and sees Jesse still staring off contemplating, but with a small smile on his face, eyes slightly wet.

Gabe smiles himself, and pushes himself up, placing a hand on Jesse’s shoulder to take him out of his thoughts. Jesse quickly wipes his eyes and looks at Gabe.

_This kid’s going to be one of the good ones._

“You want some pancakes?” He reaches a hand down for Jesse to pull him up.

“Hell yeah, jefe,” Jesse smiles wide and clasps his wrist, letting Gabriel haul him upwards.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and for all the kudos!! I’m planning on making this the first of a collection of mini series of dad/son bonding fics so stay tuned if you want more fluffy goodness
> 
>  
> 
> (( my tumblr theme is under construction but you can yell at me if you want --
> 
> https://eclectic-scribbles.tumblr.com/ ))


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